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Sterling K. Brown’s turn as a gay man in ‘American Fiction’ is truly award-worthy—& not just because he’s jacked

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Image Credit: ‘American Fiction,’ MGM

Awards season—our favorite season—is in full swing, and while out gay actors like Colman Domingo (Rustin), Jodie Foster (Nyad), and Andrew Scott (All Of Us Strangers) have the chance to become part of Oscars history if nominated for their LGBTQ+ roles, another contender has recently emerged and grabbed our attention.

On Wednesday morning, the Screen Actors Guild announced their crop of nominees for the 2024 SAG Awards. Among those nominated for Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Supporting Role was Sterling K. Brown, for his turn as recently out man Cliff Ellison in the comedy American Fiction.

Known for his work in American Crime Story and This Is Us, Brown may be straight—he’s been married to his college sweetheart, actress Ryan Michelle Bathe, since 2006—but he delivers a sensitive and nuanced portrait of a Black, gay man in the film, one that certainly feels worthy of awards attention.

Plus, it certainly doesn’t hurt that he looks like this in the movie:

Image Credit: ‘American Fiction,’ MGM

*Minor spoilers ahead for the plot of American Fiction*

In his first feature, journalist-turned-filmmaker Cord Jefferson (who has writing credits on Watchmen, The Good Place and more) adapts writer Percival Everett’s 2001 novel Erasure for the big screen, cleverly examining how our culture commodifies Blackness.

Both a razor-sharp satire and tear-jerking family drama, American Fiction centers on author and professor Monk Ellison (the great Jeffrey Wright), who is dismayed that his books don’t sell copies—because they’re quote-unquote “not black enough”—while colleagues find success by leaning into the same old racial tropes.

At a low point, he writes an intentionally hack novel about the stereotypical Black experience under a pseudonym, which quickly becomes a sensation in the publishing world and beyond, to his surprise.

Meanwhile, Monk’s dealing with a loss in his family while figuring out how to care for his elderly mother (the legendary Leslie Uggams). And that’s where Brown’s Cliff comes into the picture.

As we learn, Cliff is recently divorced after his wife found him in bed with another guy, and is now navigating his forties as an out, gay man for the first time. He and Monk have a somewhat contentious relationship, but circumstances bring them back together, and they find they now have more in common than they ever realized.

Speaking with Vanity Fair, Brown says he could empathize with Cliff, who made him think about the queer folks who have had to come out in his life and deal with “the societal pressures to try to fit in and how those can be internalized until ultimately they don’t work or they’re still being internalized.”

“He is delighting in the messiness of his life,” Brown adds, speaking to the state we find Cliff in at the beginning of the movie. “It’s not always comfortable. It doesn’t always feel good, but I think he knows that only through using his colors can he find his way into real happiness.”

American Fiction is frequently very funny, and Brown’s portrayal of a man taking advantage of the newfound freedom that comes with stepping into your authentic self certainly offers plenty of comedic moments. With abs like that, can you blame Cliff for wanting to take his shirt off as much as possible?

Speaking of, Brown tells Vanity Fair there was no mention of Cliff’s physique in the script, but he and Jefferson felt it’d make sense that the man would be flaunting what he’s got at every opportunity.

“Listen, anybody who’s been divorced for a while, whatever community, if you’re trying to get back out in these streets, you try to keep it tight,” he jokes. “I think even in terms of how uncovered he is, it is also sort of a cinematic expression of freedom.”

But it’s through his unique brotherly bond with Monk that the film finds much of its heart, too. In its final act, a chat on the porch between the two brings American Fiction‘s themes into focus, and speaks to the importance of sharing our true—out, proud—selves with the world.

Brown is phenomenal in this scene especially—subtle, warm, quietly heartbreaking—which is surely what helped warrant that SAG Award nomination. Folks, we have our Oscar reel clip right there!

And, yes, while it’s fair to have your qualms with awarding another straight actor for taking on a queer role (going “gay-for-pay,” as we often joke), Brown really is delivering something thoughtful and nuanced here. Cliff isn’t the butt of the joke, his late-in-life coming-out isn’t shameful. Instead, he’s shown to be a complex human still figuring it out, and it’s self-acceptance that allows him to bring a little enlightenment to Monk’s life.

Related:

Will an out gay finally win an Oscar for playing a gay character?

For your gay consideration…Andrew Scott in ‘All Of Us Strangers,’ Jodie Foster in ‘Nyad’ and Colman Domingo in ‘Rustin.’

So, put your notions about straight folks playing gay aside—at least this once—and allow yourself to enjoy this revelatory performance in a film well worth your attention. He

But don’t just take our word for it: Here’s what some folks are saying about Sterling K. Brown’s award-worthy turn in American Fiction:

American Fiction is currently playing in select theaters, and opens in theaters nationwide on January 12.

Related:

Sterling K. Brown strips down to ride a tractor on ‘Ellen’

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